IIT Kharagpur
Foundation
IITKGP ka tempo high hai!

Dear Reader,

This month we bring to you another story directly from an IITKGP alumni. 

Dr. Pratul Ajmera (EECE/1968/NH)

In research lab at NC State as a doctoral student

Leaving IIT Kharagpur in 1968 upon graduation was a bittersweet moment for me. I was excited to commence post graduate education but sad to part with close friends with whom I shared five years in Nehru Hall of Residence. At IIT, knowledge gained in the classrooms was just one part of our learning experience. The other part was learning life lessons from fellow students in the dormitory with whom we were engaged both academically and socially. This friendly but highly competitive atmosphere prepared us for solving problems and facing challenges that arise in our lives.

My degree from IITKGP was in Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering. At the time of my joining IIT in 1963, Kharagpur was the only institute in the nation that offered such a degree. This was the time when integrated circuits were just invented, and the field effect transistors were beginning to be commercially fabricated. It was the dawning of the digital era we live in now. It was an exciting time to be in this field and I decided to continue higher education in US. After completing MS and PhD degrees from North Carolina State University, I decided to join the academia as a teacher and a researcher first at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana and finally retiring as the acting chair of the Division of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. It was the curiosity and excitement generated in semiconductor materials and devices in those formative years at Kharagpur that motivated me to make this journey.

The experience gained as an active participant in student activities at Kharagpur gave me confidence to never shy away from taking initiative. At LSU, I started the Solid State Laboratory for research in 1984 (now Electronic Material and Device Laboratory) and was its coordinator for 30 years. While my children were growing up in Baton Rouge in 1980s, we had no systematic way to expose our children to our Hindu culture. So, with another member of the community, I took the initiative to establish the first Hindu Temple (Hindu Samaj of Baton Rouge) in early 1990s. This temple is currently active imparting and exposing community children with Hindu culture and values. During the late 1980s, seeing a need for making semiconductor devices on integrated circuit chip smaller, I was the principal author on a proposal that ultimately resulted in a $25 million federally funded research center for X-ray lithography. The Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices at Louisiana State University is currently engaged in research. As a side note, the X-ray lithography turned out to be an idea ahead of its time in 1990s as deep UV lithography continued to reduce the device sizes. Currently, it is again being looked at as an alternative to continue the progress in this area.

IITKGP put me on a path to this wonderful journey. I am retired now and live in Baton Rouge in the beautiful bayou state of Louisiana. However, my students are contributing professionally all over the world including one who is a full professor at IIT Kanpur. Thank you IITKGP for the education and discipline imparted to me and thank you Nehru Hall for giving me an opportunity to meet and live with 15 wonderful talented individuals who have remained my lifelong friends.

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